July 1, 2022 is Canada Day! In honour of our national holiday, we are taking a bit of a break and hope all of you have a wonderful, enjoyable and peaceful Canada Day.   On April 13, 2021: "For the first time, Canada takes the top spot overall in the 2021 Best Countries Report, a ranking and analysis project by U.S. News & World Report; BAV Group, a unit of global marketing communications company VMLY&R; and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania."

On June 30, 1908 A giant fireball, most likely caused by the air burst of a large meteoroid or comet, flattens 80 million trees near the Stony Tunguska River in Yeniseysk Governorate, Russia, in the largest impact event in recorded history. The Tunguska event (occasionally also called the Tunguska incident) was a ~12 megaton explosion that occurred near the Podkamennaya Tunguska River in Yeniseysk Governorate (now Krasnoyarsk Krai), Russia, on the morning of June 30, 1908. The explosion over the sparsely populated Eastern Siberian Taiga flattened an estimated 80 million trees over an area of 2,150 km2 (830 sq mi) of forest, and eyewitness reports suggest that at least three people may have died in the event.

On June 29, 2007 Irish singer and songwriter Enya received an honorary doctorate from the National University of Ireland, Galway. Enya Patricia Brennan (born 17 May 1961) is an Irish singer, songwriter and musician, known for pioneering modern Celtic and New-age music. Regarded as the "Queen of New Age", Enya is the best-selling Irish solo artist in history, and second-best-selling overall behind U2.

On June 28, 1762 Russian Tsarina Catherine II seized power, declaring herself sovereign ruler of Russia. Catherine II (born Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst; 2 May 1729 – 17 November 1796), most commonly known as Catherine the Great, was Empress of Russia from 1762 until 1796, the country's last empress regnant and longest-ruling female leader. She came to power following the overthrow of her husband and second cousin, Peter III. Under her long reign, inspired by the ideas of the Enlightenment, Russia experienced a renaissance of culture and sciences, many new cities, universities and theaters were founded, a large number of European immigrants moved to Russia, and Russia was recognized as one of the great powers of Europe.

On June 27, 1894 American Annie Londonderry [Annie Kopchovsky] sets out from Boston to become first woman to bicycle around the world (she completes her journey in September 1895). Annie Cohen Kopchovsky (1870 – 11 November 1947), known as Annie Londonderry, was a Jewish Latvian immigrant to the United States who in 1894–95 became the first woman to bicycle around the world. After having completed her travel, she built a media career around engagement with popular conception of what it was to be female.

On June 26, 1843 Hong Kong was proclaimed a British Crown Colony. Hong Kong, officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta in South China. With 7.5 million residents of various nationalities in a 1,104-square-kilometre (426 sq mi) territory, Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated places in the world. Hong Kong is also a major global financial centre and one of the most developed cities in the world.

On June 25, 1910 Igor Stravinsky's ballet "The Firebird", written for the Ballets Russes, premiered at the Opéra de Paris, Paris. Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ComSE (17 June 1882 – 6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential composers of the 20th century and a pivotal figure in modernist music.

On June 24, 1441 Eton College was founded in England by Henry VI. Eton College is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore, intended as a sister institution to King's College, Cambridge, making it the 18th-oldest Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference (HMC) school. Eton is particularly well-known for its history, wealth, and notable alumni, called Old Etonians.

On this Day: On June 23, 930 the World's oldest parliament, the Icelandic Parliament, the Alþingi (anglicised as Althing or Althingi), was established. The Alþingi…

Continue reading → Smile of the Day Thursday June 23, 2022: The World’s Oldest Parliament – Iceland

On June 22, 1633 Galileo Galilei was forced to recant his Copernican views that the Earth orbits the Sun by the Pope (the Vatican only admits it was wrong on Oct 31, 1992!).